Oklahoma Postal Workers Feel Postmaster Reform Efforts

The U.S. Postmaster General announced Tuesday he’s halting some operational changes until after the November election, “to avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail.”

Postal workers in Oklahoma said changes already implemented by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy have slowed mail delivery in Oklahoma.

Congresswoman Kendra Horn (D-OKC) held a press conference with postal workers Tuesday.

“I think we’ve seen statements to that effect, that they were attempting to undermine access to the polls,” Horn said.

Senator James Lankford, a member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee overseeing the post office said in a Facebook video, attempts to link new USPS changes to the election, “Is a bunch of rumors that are all being streamed together and fake news is being put out there and people are buying into it.”

“The new ruling is really putting a cramp into a lot of the smaller towns and even some of the bigger towns,” Oklahoma Postal Workers Union President Earl Smith said.

Smith works in the Enid post office. He said order cracking down on overtime pay means they can’t wait for trucks coming in even a few minutes late.

“Right after this first happened, we had a truck come in and it had mail for Aline and for Goltry and some of the smaller post offices - they are not getting any mail that day because it’s all in that one (truck)” Smith said.

The U.S. Postmaster General said in a statement, retail hours at Post Offices will not change, mail processing equipment and blue collection boxes will remain where they are, and no mail processing facilities will be closed.

Smith said a sorting machine in Tulsa has already been taken offline, causing ripple effects down the line.

“They’re taking some of the machines out and it’s not getting sorted as quickly, which I think is interesting that they’re saying, ‘well we can’t sort this mail.’” Smith said.“Well no, we can’t not if you’re taking the machines out. So that’s kind of a self-made problem if you ask me.”